Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Drew is ready for his closeup

Hospitals now routinely have a professional photographer come to your hospital room to take photos of your new baby. Drew showed us right away how photogenic he is - and most of the best photos were taken with Jim's camera, not the pro's.


The "cute little outfit" I had brought to the hospital for this purpose had a "cute little hat" that went with it. (Ask Jim how many times I've said the phrase "cute little outfit. It's gotten to the point that he responds "that's so cute" without looking up just to shut me up!) When we finally got him dressed (not an easy feat for new parents dressing a baby for the first time) he screamed and screamed when we put the hat on. I realized immediately what good fashion sense he has - the hat was ridiculous and made him look like a little old lady with curlers under her kerchief. We took it off before the official photos, but not before taking a couple of pics to embarrass him with later! Here are the outtakes:



No pictures, please!






Sorry son, it's hard not to laugh!



Now on to more serious photos:

What a cherub! So alert for being alive just under 48 hours!


Our favorite shot


Daddy loves you


Mommy loves you



Our little family

Sunday, March 28, 2010

March 4, 2010 - Drew's Birth Day!

LONG POST! Details (but not gory details) of the day Drew was born.

Drew was born at 2:01 PM on March 4, his due date.

I had said all along that I thought he'd wait until at least his due date to be born, possibly even going past it by a week or more since Jim and I were both born late.

Jim's parents had arrived in town a couple of days before to be here for the birth of their first grandchild (he's the first on both sides of the family!) and we met them at the mall for lunch on March 3. I remember plotting exactly where I could park to make it in and out of the mall with the least amount of walking and still make returns to a couple of stores - since for some reason walking was just more uncomfortable than it had been during the rest of pregnancy. I had been having little contractions for more than a week, but nothing that developed into a pattern... until that evening.

My contractions were getting more and more uncomfortable that night when we went to bed, and after Jim fell asleep I finally got up and went downstairs to the couch. I was using my iPhone app "iContraction" (yes, there's an app for that) to count contractions, which went from 17 minutes apart, to 12 minutes, to 7 minutes overnight. Finally at 3 AM I was in so much pain I decided only a warm shower would help. Jim had been asleep through all of this and finally woke up to the sound of his wife showering at 3 AM. That was a serious clue that something was going on!

At 4 AM I was back on the couch downstairs and my contractions were 2-4 minutes apart, but were only lasting about 30 seconds each. Our doctor and our birthing class had both drilled into us that we shouldn't leave for the hospital until the contractions were 5 minutes apart AND lasting at least a minute a piece for an hour. I didn't want to be one of those first time moms who shows up at the hospital way too early, so I called the doctor on call at 4 AM to see if we should come in. He was clearly asleep, not happy to be woken up by a first time mom, didn't really listen to my description of labor but instead asked when my next appointment would be. Since it was that afternoon (on the due date) he told me to try to just wait and come to the appointment... which it turned out should have been at 3 PM - an hour after Drew was actually born!

About 30 minutes later I just decided to ignore the doctor on call and go ahead and go to the hospital. Never having been through labor before I had no idea if I was very far along or if this was going to get much, much worse, but I just thought: "the only thing they can do is send me home!" By the time Jim woke up I was in the "don't touch me, don't talk to me" kind of pain. We got ready, got in the car and headed to the hospital, 45 minutes away, in rush hour traffic. I wasn't the most friendly wife or the best passenger on the drive there, and Jim jokes that by the time I walked in the door (around 8 AM) and got to the registration desk (stopping to have several contractions on the way) I basically said: "EPIDURAL! My name is Jessica LaGrone." Sure enough, by the time they checked I was already 5 cm dilated and ready for my new best friend, the epidural! When Jim returned to the room after the anesthesiologist left he says I was a completely different person, instead of greeting him with grunts and scowls it was like I hadn't seen him that day at all and greeted him with: "Hi there! We're having a baby today!"

The rest of the day is part dream, part blur. My mom and Jim's parents got there. One of my best friends Alicia arrived. They were in and out of our room as were our (wonderful!) doctor and some very kind nurses. Around 1 PM the doctor decided it was time to move things along and only Jim and I stayed in the room while the rest of the family went to get lunch in the cafeteria assuming, like with so many first labors, that this would take a while. But at 2:01 PM Andrew James LaGrone was born! It was exactly what we had prayed for, a safe and quick delivery, resulting in the birth of a perfect little boy.


Holding him for the first time


First family photo!

Drew had a head full of dark hair and came out crying. Jim and I both thought that his first cries sounded more like a song, with a beautiful tenor voice that we had never heard before but instantly recognized. When they put Drew on my stomach I was immediately struck not by how tiny this newborn was, but by how big! He was 8 lb 13 oz and 20 inches long. I still have no idea how a relatively small couple produced this big baby!



Drew seemed to know our voices immediately, since he had been listening to them in utero for so long. When he cried that day he was easliy comforted by our talking to him and holding him.


Proud Daddy already has the video camera going!

Our parents came back in an hour or so later and we introduced them to him, announcing his name for the first time, and then having them each introduce themselves with their new grandparent names: Grammy, Granma, and PaPaw. Aunt Ann and Mum mum (my grandmother) arrived later that day.


LaGrone family photo


With Grammy and Mum mum

Jim got to go with Drew for his first bath and some initial tests in the nursery. This was a special time for them and Jim says Drew loved the warm water and really loved the heat lamp!

First bath


Heat lamp bliss!

Later that night my dad and brother arrived (dressed in top hats to welcome their new family member in style) and joined my stepmom who was already in Houston on business (months before she had announced the perfect day and time for Drew to arrive, and he hit it on the head!) So now Granddad, Nana and Uncle Jonathan could get aquainted with our new little blessing.


Box family

Even though I hadn't slept at all the night before or eaten all day I was so alert and awake the whole day and even had a difficult time calming down to go to sleep that night because I was so happy. Drew slept in a bassinett on one side of the bed and Jim slept on the couch on the other side. I felt so blessed, so completely happy. It was an amazing day that I couldn't have planned better if it had been up to me, and this little boy that we were just getting to know was the most beautiful gift I had ever received.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Getting Ready for Baby

From the day we first knew Drew was on his way we loved him and began to get our world ready for his arrival.

This slideshow begins with the news we received on June 22, 2009, the day after Father's Day, and continues with ultrasounds as he develops on the inside, profile shots of me as I get rounder and rounder on the outside, the progress of the nursery and the baby items that took over our house, and celebrations with loved ones as we anticipated his arrival. It ends on the morning of March 4, 2010 (post epidural!) at Methodist hospital just before his birth.

Psalm 139:13-14
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Drew's blogging premiere!

Welcome to the official LaGrone family blog, site for all information about Baby Extraordinaire, Andrew James LaGrone!

Drew was born March 4, 2010 on his actual due date. Since only 3-5% of babies keep a calendar in utero and accomplish this feat, we're declaring that he's already in the top 5% of his class. He weighed 8 pounds and 13 ounces and was 20 inches long, already a big boy by newborn standards!

We look forward to sharing news and pictures here as he grows. Thanks for joining us and celebrating our own little miracle!